Improvement in apparatus for parlor-croquet



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ALBERT, P. EASTMAN, 0F WASHI'NCr'lON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.

I Letters Patent No. 109,120, dated November 8, 1870 The'Schedulereferred to in these Letters Patent and making parl: of the same.

V I, ALBERT PjEAsTliIAN, of Washington, Washington county and DistrictofColumbia, have invented certain improvementsin House-CroquetInstruinents, of whichthe following is a specification.

Figure l is a plan view;

Figure 2'is a side elevation;

Figure 3, a side elevation oi'a turning-stake, showing a secondmethod ofattaching the prongs; and

Figure 4 is-a plan view of the bottom of the stake, showing theshoulders on the prongs.

This invention consists of a croquet-wicket, or a socket to receive theend of av croquet-wicket, or a croquet turning-stake, whenv providedwith prongs extending horizontally from the lower end of the socket orstake, or the extremities of the wicket, in such manner as to hold theWicket-socket o1" stake sta# tionary upon the carpet or floor ot' a roomin a dweling-house,` by the aid of loops attached to the carpet, inwhich the prongs are inserted.

The invention also consists ot' a croquet turningstake, made insections, running lengthwise of the stake and connected by springs, theobject of such construction being to admit of the spreading apart of thesections far enough to enable the player to insert the hooks on theendsof the prongs into the loopsof the carpet, after which the springsdraw the.

sections of the stake together again, thus confining the hooks in theloops. l

The invention also consists in a wicket, socket, or stake, when providedwith the aforesaid prongs, and with a disk attached horizontally at thelower end oi' the stake, or Aat the extremities of the wicket, th efunction ot' the. disk being to prevent the wicket or stake from fallinglaterally.

Referring to the drawinga is a croquetfwicket.

I), a turning-stake.

c, prongs secured in any'suitable manner to the low\er end of the stake,and to the extremities of the wicket, and extending horizontallytherefrom when the stake andl wicket are placed vertically upon acarpet.

e are loops attached to the carpet or iloor, through which to insert theprongs.

't are disks, attached to the extremities of the wicket, anti'extending'iu an opposite direction from the prongs, for the purpose ofpreventing the wicket from falling.

d are elastic bands, which connect the sections b of the stake.

f, hooks on the ends of the prongs of the stake, and

g, knobs, which may be taken hold of to spread the sections b apart.

The loops ve may he made of thread of the same color as the carpet, andneed not be large enough to he noticed, when the instruments are not inuse.

In iig. 3 is shown, a turning-stake, having straight prongs c, withouthooks, each prong extending under and outside ofthe opposite section bfrom that to which it is attached. The object of this arrangement is todo away with the necessity of rising the hooks.

The length of the prongs and the radius of the disk shouldbe less thanthe radius ofthe balls, in order that the balls may not strike theprongs or disk.

In fig. 4 is seen a set of' prongs, arranged, with respect to the stake,on the plan shown in fig. 3, and

provided with shoulders n, either at the periphery of' the stake oroutside the same.

The function of the shoulders is, after one prong has been inserted intoits loop as far as the shoulder, to hold the section b to which saidprong is attached,

by the pressure of the shoulder against the loop, while the player drawsback the other-section toward the loop against which the shoulder ispressing, far enough to enable him to insert the other prong into itsloop.

A groove, m., may he made above the prong ein vthe bottom of eachsection b, opposite theloop, in order that the section may clear thcloop as it is drawn over it.

I am aware'that plates provided with vertical tubesv Y to receive thewickets and stakes are no new thing;

but I consider my inventionsuperior to these, f 'or the reason that theprongs may be placed on the upper side of the carpet, while theplatesvhave to be placed beneath a piece of carpeting, and holes have'tobe made in the carpet for the tubes to project through,

.and a frame has to be provided to inclose and stretch the carpet.

I dispense with the frame and carpeting entirely,

Athus enabling the instruments to he set to the full size

